More dollars for training Nurse Practitioners groundbreaking [N.Z.]

"The announcement by Health Minister Jonathan Coleman that an additional 20 training places would be allocated to Nurse Practitioners next year has been hailed as 'ground breaking' by Network chair and Nurse Practitioner Sharon Hansen.

While hailing the initiative she says there are some challenges too.1. "to ensure that there is an even distribution throughout the country for these NPs in terms of their training and work placement post registration."2. "to ensure that the proposed support is put into the work environment. We have always struggled with mentorship both in training and in the first year after NP registration has been completed. One of the things that NPs need is good collegial and peer support and good structures around them, and that's ongoing."3. a "need to have the connectivity between training, trainees and primary care practices in rural [areas]"4. employment of NPs in rural practices--"Nurse Practitioners will bring in their own funding sources through things such as co-payments and through existing payment schemes. We are not looking at new money, but we are looking at helping practices grow their business models.

'Nurse Practitioners will play a valuable role in the new and evolving model of primary health care in rural centered on the needs of patients and their wants and we have to think about that in a sustainable way,' says Ms Hansen."